Quotes about C.A.R.S.

"In 1979, when a car dealer gave Rosemary Shahan a hard time about getting her car fixed, he could not have imagined the consequences for the auto industry...Not only did Shahan picket his dealership for five months, but the North Canton native then spent the next 20 years as a consumer advocate...She now heads to California-based Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety... she recently played an important role in awakening less-than-alert Ohio legislators and preventing the auto industry from planting what she saw as a boobytrap in Ohio's lemon law...

Rosemary Shahan with fellow Buckeye Richard Cordray, former Attorney General of Ohio, who is serving as the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

[One of the provisions in the bill, backed by auto manufacturers] raised the possibility that an automaker could stall the consumer forever by simply not making an appointment for the repair...

'She was really the consumer watchdog...the initial alert,' said Amy Simpson, the state director for the Ohio Public Interest Research Group (PIRG). "A lot of people, when they looked at the legislation, they looked at the summary, they looked at the title and they looked at the sponsors. Noe of those things raised any red flags. Rosemary took the time to do some analysis and then had the tenacity to contact and follow up with people. From our perspective, she was the instigator in alerting us,' Simpson said.

Suddenly, consumer groups such as Ohio PIRG, the Ralph-Nader founded Center for Auto Safety and the Consumer Federation of America were on the attack over the last-chance-for-repair notification.

The notification requirement would drastically impact how or if consumers get relief in Ohio, according to Phil Nowicki, a nationally known lemon-law consultant from Tallahassee, who ran Florida's [lemon law] program....

Thanks to Shahan's calls, the same bill that breezed through the House was soon being looked at very closely in the Senate, where the senators ultimately agreed that the last-chance notification would hurt consumers. The Senate approved an amendment to remove the last-chance notification from the bill, angering auto industry lobbyists. On May 19, the House considered the bill and agreed that the Senate had been right to change it. It is now being considered by Ohio Gov. Bob Taft."

Note: Governor Taft signed the bill into law, without the harmful provision that would have allowed auto manufacturers to delay making repairs to seriously defective lemon cars indefinitely.

Money Magazine: Heroes
A yearlong celebration of 40 people who have made extraordinary efforts to improve others' financial well-being.May 2012

"Shahan is the founder and president of Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety (CARS). The Sacramento organization has been the driver of some of the most important advances in auto-related safety and financial protection regulation on the books today.

Shahan, 62, championed the nation's first lemon law in California, which has since been copied in every state. She was a major force behind the federal air bag mandate and laws protecting military service members from abusive car loans. And she's not finished."Read more here: articles.latimes.com/2012/apr/01/business/la-fi-himi-shahan-20120401

Los Angeles Times
"In 1979, when a car dealer gave Rosemary Shahan a hard time about getting her car fixed, he could not have imagined the consequences for the auto industry. Not only did Shahan picket his dealership for five months, but the North Canton, Ohio native then spent the next 20 years as a consumer advocate -- lobbying, cajoling, complaining, and generally causing trouble for the auto industry.

She now heads the California-based Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety, which is based in Sacramento. But by phone and fax, she recently played an important role in awakening less-than-alert Ohio legislators and preventing the auto industry from planting what she saw as a boobytrap in Ohio's lemon law....In Ohio, Shahan was concerned about proposed changes to the lemon law, which was adopted in 1987. It gives consumers the right to force automakers to take back defective vehicles." -- "The 'nuisance' who helped win Ohio's lemon-law fight," Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 30, 1999.

CARS Founder, Rosemary Shahan, is "as tenacious as a bulldog, consistent as the Milky Way, and as humane in her own way as Mother Teresa." -- Ralph Nader, consumer advocate. Safe Passage: driven to push for better auto laws," San Diego Union-Tribune, June 15, 1991

"Auto company lobbyists here not only know who [CARS founder Shahan] is, they acknowledge that she does their homework. Automakers are reluctant to discuss Shahan, but during the past year they have begun to gripe informally that she knows all too well how to draw national attention to air bags, which auto makers have fought for for than 15 years as being too costly...in sum, says a Toyota Motor Corp. lobbyist: 'She has everything it takes to cause this industry many headaches for many years.'" -- "Auto activist steers fight for air bags," Detroit Free Press, Jan. 11, 1987

"There's going to be a big lemon aid party in Lemon Grove, CA...[CARS Founder] is planning to celebrate the passage of the 'lemon law' bill giving vehicle owners increased rights when it comes to cars that turn out to be lemons... It was her encounter with a dealership in Lemon Grove that started the push for the law... Since then, she has pursued making getting lemon-aid easier for other consumers...
One manufacturer testified that his firm might take 30 tries to have a single problem fixed. The new law says that if a substantial defect isn't remedied after 4 repair attempts or 30 days out of service, the owner is entitled to a refund or replacement." -- "After 3 1/2 years of bitter struggle, the lemon law finds sweet success," The Daily Californian, July 10, 1982

CARS Founder "has proved that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Three years ago, she was a lone picketer, protesting at an auto dealership in Lemon Grove...she started lobbying for a 'lemon law' bill, fighting her way from San Diego to Sacramento, where she watched Gov. Edmond Brown Jr. sign the bill into law...Assemblywoman Sally Tanner, who authored the law, flew her to Sacramento" for the signing ceremony. -- "Originator of 'lemon auto' protest sees it bear fruit," Los Angeles Times, July 9, 1982

_ _ _

C.A.R.S. Mission

CARS is a national, award-winning,
non-profit auto safety and consumer
advocacy organization working to
save lives, prevent injuries, and
protect consumers from
auto-related fraud and abuse.

THANK YOU!

to everyone who has supported CARS' work, including the more than 573,500 people who have contributed financially to CARS, signed or shared CARS' petitions, and / or posted personal comments.

NEVER trust that a dealer will have the safety recall repairs performed before selling you a car that is being recalled. Dealers are so eager to make a buck, fast, they are unwilling to delay sales long enough to get the safety recall repairs done -- for FREE.

Plus -- dealers are actively opposing legislation in Washington, DC and in California that would prohibit them from renting, selling, leasing, or loaning unsafe, recalled vehicles to consumers, unless the safety recall repairs have been performed first.

CARS' tips on how to buy a safe, reliable used car — without having to risk going to a dealer:

Did a dealer sell you an unsafe, recalled car? We want to hear your story. Contact CARS

Buyer Beware! Auto dealers' one-
sided contracts can ruin your life

Even if the car dealer breaks the law, you might not be able to get justice. Forced arbitration clauses hidden in the fine print can keep you tied up for years. The dealer often gets to pick the arbitrator who hears your case. CARS exposed how a dealer abused arbitration, after selling Jon Perz an unsafe car. CARS' video has received over 1.3 million views on YouTube. Jon and his attorney eventually won, but because of forced arbitration, Jon had to wait 8 years for justice:

Think this is outrageous? Call your member of Congress at 202-224-3121, and urge them
to vote for the Arbitration Fairness Act. More about the AFA, now pending before Congress:http://www.fairarbitrationnow.org